For a while, I couldn’t get the Yeah Yeah Yeahs “Zero” out of my head. The lyrics are pretty sparse, but people have come up with interesting interpretations. The idea of the song referring to a prostitute does seem to fit. But, maybe because the bass-line reminds me of an engine, or a propeller, “zero” makes me think of the Mitsubishi Zero, the mainstay of the Imperial Japanese air force during World War II, and of kamikazes.

“Ladder to the sun” leads me to think of Japan. “Get your leather on” also makes me think of fighter pilots. “Try to hit the spot/get to know it in the dark” (while more appropriate for a bomber rather than a fighter) and “better find out where they want you to go” also make me think of aerial combat. “Can you climb, climb, climb higher?” certainly fits the flying idea. “Shellshock” (while more of WWI term) also makes me think of that time period.

Or it could just be that the first time I heard this song, it was right after hearing “Enola Gay” by Orchestral Manœuvers in the Dark